Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Carl Research Award [Awarded By The California Academic And Research Libraries Association], Shannon M. Staley

Shannon M. Staley

As the Library and Information Science profession has developed a range of core competencies for information literacy based on the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education, the need to assess students' progressive understanding of those competencies has become critical to determining the effectiveness of various library instruction approaches. Currently, there is no standardized or uniform way of assessing student information literacy skills at our library. A review of the literature reveals that many assessment surveys in the field are created without a process of standardization to determine whether respondents interpret questions correctly. …

Csu Mini Grant [Awarded By California State University], Shannon M. Staley

Shannon M. Staley

To apply quality research on information literacy, two graduate students will be hired. One will employ appropriate statistical methods for data collection. The other will program these new statistical reporting features into an online assessment tool and improve its overall usability. This will enhance an understanding of how library instruction impacts SJSU students’ educational experience.

A Standardized Approach To Assessment: Results From A Pilot Study Of Library Instruction Sessions At San Jose State University, Shannon M. Staley

Shannon M. Staley

Introduction
We explore the use of a psychometric model for locally-relevant, information literacy assessment, using an online tool for standardised assessment of student learning during discipline-based library instruction sessions.

Method
A quantitative approach to data collection and analysis was used, employing standardised multiple-choice survey questions followed by individual, cognitive interviews with undergraduate students. The assessment tool was administered to five general education psychology classes during library instruction sessions.

Analysis
Descriptive statistics were generated by the assessment tool. Results. The assessment tool proved a feasible means of measuring student learning. While student scores improved on every survey question, there was uneven …

Sharepoint For Libraries: Streamlining Your Intranet Management, Shannon M. Staley

Shannon M. Staley

Combining WYSIWYG web editing with blogs, calendars, discussion boards, RSS, and other Web 2.0 innovations, Microsoft SharePoint has been adopted by many institutions as an easy way to create a self-propagating intranet. With staff able to edit pages, upload documents, and have discussions, SharePoint can seem to be a panacea. Two expert library web managers who have been through the pilots, implementations, and staff rollouts share their experiences.

Using A Wiki In Collaborative Strategic Planning [Refereed Poster Session], Shannon M. Staley

Shannon M. Staley

For the past several years, many have viewed wikis as useful tools for community building and collaboration. A number of free Web services such as PBwiki have claimed convenience and ease of use as part of their overall packages. Areview of the literature reveals a great deal of anecdotal support for wiki use in the workplace. However, few studies have been conducted to determine whether wikis are useful collaborative tools for employees within an organization. This case study will examine the use of a wiki by library employees during the strategic planning process at San Jose State University.

Collaborative Strategic Planning: A Wiki Application, Susan L. Kendall, Mary H. Nino, Shannon M. Staley

Shannon M. Staley

For the past several years, many have viewed wikis as useful tools for community building and collaboration. A number of free Web services such as PBwiki have claimed convenience and ease of use as part of their overall packages. Areview of the literature reveals a great deal of anecdotal support for wiki use in the workplace. However, few studies have been conducted to determine whether wikis are useful collaborative tools for employees within an organization. This case study will examine the use of a wiki by library employees during the strategic planning process at San Jose State University.

Junior Faculty Career Development Grant [Awarded By San Jose State University], Shannon M. Staley

Shannon M. Staley

The need to assess students’ understanding of information literacy competencies has become critical to determining the effectiveness of library instruction. This is particularly true at San Jose State University, where measurement tools are not uniformly applied. Currently, many online achievement tests measure student competence at a general rather than course-specific level. This project proposes the development of an application that enables librarians to create assessment tools matching specific learning objectives of individual courses. Preliminary findings will be shared at information literacy conferences, where experts convene to exchange ideas. Harvesting feedback, the application will be further developed through additional grant funding.

Customizing Subject Guide Content For Different Disciplines: A User-Centered Approach, Shannon M. Staley

Shannon M. Staley

Very few studies examine how campus communities actually make use of subject guides, which is key to informing how they should be created. Usability studies of subject page use often yield inconclusive results because the test sample is not representative of the actual campus population. Usability studies / focus groups are an excellent way of supplementing data already in existence. Survey data from a previous study, "Academic Subject Guides: A Case Study at San Jose State University," is examined to provide more rigorous guidance in developing user-centric models of online research guides.

Academic Subject Guides: A Case Study Of Use At San Jose State University, Shannon M. Staley

Shannon M. Staley

Subject guides are lists of resources created to assist students with their research needs. While academic librarians ascribe great importance to subject guide development, it is difficult to tell whether students find them useful. A review of the literature reveals a lack of user-centered data in this area.This study investigates students’use of subject guides in three areas of study—Nursing, Journalism & Mass Communications, and Organization & Management. Results indicate that students who have received library instruction tend to use subject guides more frequently and find them useful.

Student Expectations For Library Web Site Organization, Charity B. Hope, Shannon M. Staley

Shannon M. Staley

The authors solicited 201 San Jose State University student volunteers to participate in card-sorting exercises. This was to determine how the students envisioned the organization of the library web site. Each card in the sorting exercises represented a major page of the library web site, and students were asked to categorize them into groups and then label the groups. Cluster analysis was used to determine categorical strengths.